Watching

Here on this earth
round blue dot
a light in the sea of lights
many watch as something nears
like ripening fruit
taking millennia
but a blink for others.

We have been visited countless times
by those with the same thirst for adventure
and discovery
that has driven us forward out of the dark ages
and into an uncertain light.

But what stands as our next great achievement
is not yet filled
but is filling
like a lake before a dam
whose waters swirl and press
the soft edges and purposes
of a burgeoning tide.

Most stand and watch
waiting for the verdict
the outcome
the many timelines bearing
offering
pressing
rising
and falling
as we make up the script
from parcels and pieces
within and without.

They watch to see if we can become
more like they
speaking a language
an understanding
beyond this illusion
a step out of shadow
and into the light.

Will we cast off the robes of our enslavement
to find it was never another who did so
but that it was we each
individually
who sought to keep the cage tightly sealed
or will we turn one step back
or make some decision
that will forestall what may well be the inevitable?

My mind turns on this
I have seen their forms
moving in from incredible distances
ancient presences
entirely made of dust
waiting to send the signal
the all clear sign
vast arrays of brothers and sisters
creatures of every sort
ready to celebrate a rare achievement
a day of graduating
into a cosmic maternity
a fraternity of life seeking life
in all its varied forms.

If we step put to his
it will mean the end of our old world.
If we are brave enough
to let the old shackles fall
the new world that awaits us won't be any less challenging
but rightly lit and more enduring
and promising than all that followed.
I can't say exactly how it will be
but I see a giant keyhole
unlocked by a great key
that is the very universe
as we loosened
move out through stars
no longer watched
but shown
what was always ours to discover.